One of my favorite moments of a wedding day is the “first look” when the groom see his bride for the first time. It’s a romantic private moment that adds so much to the day. Erin and Jon’s first look is going down as one of my favorites. And because they saw each other before the ceremony, we were able to plan in enough time to head downtown for some photos amongst Vegas’s colorful neon lights!Loved Erin’s hair and makeup by Makeup in the 702. The side-swept ponytail looked so romantic!

Of course, I can’t end the post without to giving a shout to Erin and Jon’s super stylish wedding party – such an awesome group of people!

For for theme, I took inspiration from the unique style of Sofia Coppola’s ‘Marie Antoinette’ (if you haven’t seen it, it’s a must!). I’ve always wanted to do my own take on it for a wedding-shoot and love how it turned out. Huge props go to my incredible team that pulled the vision together and made the shoot-out a huge success: AMAZING floral by Layers of Lovely, the epic cake and treats by Gimme Some Sugar, killer hair and makeup by Your Beauty Call, decor from The Pottery Shop, inspiring off-camera lighting demo by Steve Fogarty, an awesome behind-the-scenes video by Lighten Films, my girls Kristin Wilson and Liz Le for all their help bringing everything together and last but not least, our models: Carrie, Sarah and Lindsey – (all real and completely FABULOUS brides). Tons of love goes out to you all!

Here’s some of my images from the shoot:

Admittedly I always go a little crazy over Catherine at Layers of Lovely’s floral designs. Here’s Carrie modeling the pearl and peonies bouquet:

Lindsey’s rockin’ the macaroons - one thing a Marie Antoinette themed shoot would be incomplete without!

Towards the end of the shoot we topped things off with a surprise cake fight! While it was a bit sad seeing Gimme Some Sugar’s masterpiece getting torn apart, it was so much fun (and delicious too)! I couldn’t resist digging my fingers in for a little cake action – YUM!

Below is a fantastic behind the scenes video by one of my fave videographers, Terrence of Lighten Films!
You may notice that I sound like a complete dork at the beginning. I’m going to blame it on the cold, lol. It was freezing! Props go to the brides for rockin’ it out in the crazy weather we had that day.

**Click here to check out more images from this shoot in the feature on The Wedding Chicks!**

Also, congrats to all the couples that were featured! You guys rock!!

Wedding Chicks

Wedding Chicks featured the Marie Antoinette themed shoot I put together with Layers of Lovely, Your Beauty Call, Gimme Some Sugar and The Pottery Shop. I’ll be blogging more on this soon! In the meantime, check out the front-page feature on the WC site:

Weddings in Houston Magazine

Weddings in Houston Magazine featured the travel-themed invitation suite I photographed by the super talented Tifany of Gourmet Invitations:

Occasions Magazine

Occasions Magazine Online featured the Chinese “east meets west” themed styled shoot I worked on with Juliet Douglas of Green Orchid Events! Shouts go to the incredible team: Platinum Hotel, Enchanted Florist, Your Beauty Call, LTevention, Peridot Sweets, Bella Bridesmaid, Lola and George, Dress the Drink, Chameleon Chair, Pink Orchid Designs – and of course our fab couple, Jenn and Alex.

Destination Inspirations

Destination Inspirations featured Shauna & Dustin’s Trash the Dress at the Neon Museum:

Examiner

Examiner interviewed me for an article on trash the dress:

Destination I Do Magazine

Destination I Do Magazine did a blog feature on Emma and Fabrice’s trash the dress in Paris, France:

Simply Blue Weddings

Simply Blue Weddings posted a photograph from Lindy & Dang’s wedding at Mandarin Oriental as the “Blue Pic of the Day”

JLM Weddings

JLM Couture did a “Real Brides” feature of Jill & Ian’s wedding:

Occasions Magazine

Occasions Magazine Online featured Monica & George‘s Moroccan inspired wedding at Loews Lake Las Vegas:

Love Olio

I’m thrilled to be included in Love Olio’s “visual directory of the most creative wedding photographers in the world”

Destination Inspirations

Destination Inspirations featured Kelly & Orr’s wedding at the Four Seasons:

Wed Savy

Wed Savy featured an image from Larissa and Staford’s sweet-hearts inspired couples session in the article “10 Engagement Photos that Rock!”

Destination Inspirations

Destination Inspirations included Kayla and Sean’s engagement session and wedding in a 2-part feature! Check out part one of their engagement session HERE and part two of their wedding day HERE.

Black Bride & Groom Magazine

Black Bride & Groom Magazine published images from Dennise & Harvey’s trash the dress in their summer edition.

Design Aglow

Design Aglow is one of the top online stores for photographers – loaded with great products, templates and inspiration. I’m honored to have my images included in two of their recent product launches!

-  Inspire Me Cards – a creative posing guide for brides filled with some of the best photographic talent in the industry.

- Poetry & Beauty collage Templates:

Shout-out goes to Your Beauty Call for rockin’ Tracy’s hair and makeup!Check out Tracy’s hot Christian Louboutin‘s that Alex got her for the shoot. Good gift giver – not a bad quality to have in a husband. I can’t wait for the wedding this spring at Four Seasons! It’s bound to be amazing – especially with uber-fab Brit Bertino of Simply Weddings coordinating!

For now, I want to take a moment to wish everyone a happy Christmas! For the last few years Jayse and I have been making personal holiday cards with the theme of “Christmas in the Desert.” Here’s the photos from this years card:

I hope you have a magical Christmas and New Years with the ones you love the most! 2012 here we come!

Britt and Michael are from Kentucky, but they love traveling and I think it’s safe to say they have a bit of a love affair with Las Vegas. So for their engagement session we did things up Vegas-style with a trip to the fabulous Neon Museum! The bright retro signs ended up being the perfect compliment to Britt and Michael’s colorful, fun-loving personalities.

Do I spot a butt grab here? You two are so darn cute!

B+M: Thanks for an awesome time! Hope you two had a blast honeymooning it up in New Orleans!

For the photography I decided to create images that had a modern feel while reflecting the playfulness of the era. I took visual cues from 90′s graffiti and vibrant color trends, using bold shapes and splashes of color.

The shoot was held at Rumor – a super swanky boutique hotel just minutes off the strip. If you’re looking for a cool, modern location for an intimate wedding or after party, you should definitely check it out!

Of course, a 90′s hip-hop themed wedding wouldn’t be complete without great entertainment. Brandon Namebrand totally brought it with his killer dance moves on a LED dance-floor from Naakiti Floral.
Some of the pretty details:

Check out the feature on Rock ‘n Roll Bride with even more images from the shoot!

CREDITS

Photographer: Chelsea Nicole (me)
Coordinator: Simply Weddings by Brit Bertino
Venue: Rumor Boutique Hotel in Las Vegas
Bride’s Dress: Bella Bridesmaid
Groom’s Attire: Tuxedo Junction
Hair & Make Up: Make the Bride Up
Linens: Creative Coverings
Stationary: Sky Orange Studio
Flowers: Naakiti Floral
Cake: Gimme Some Sugar
Break Dancer: Brandon Namebrand
Couple: Jenifer Duncan & Dominick Hill

Lindsey and Nate‘s destination wedding in San Antonio Texas was featured as 1 of 5 Real Weddings in a special editorial piece – “What You Get for the Money.” The article features five weddings at different price-points and shows how each couple was able to pull off a gorgeous, personalized destination wedding while staying within budget.

The issue officially hit the stands today so be sure to check your local bookstore (or click here to subscribe online)!

Simply put, this engagement session makes me happy. Kayla and Sean couldn’t be more perfect for each other and it was such a thrill to be able to capture that special something they share. I can’t wait to photograph their wedding (only 18 days to go)!

Kayla & Sean, I had an blast with you guys! Thanks for being so trusting and open to my ideas.